With recent progress in the development of solid-state image sensors such as a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) and a CMOS (Complementary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor) having a high pixel, digital still cameras and digital video cameras (simply referred to as “digital cameras”, hereinafter) are rapidly spreading that employ an imaging device including an imaging optical system of high optical performance corresponding to the above-mentioned solid-state image sensors of a high pixel. Among these digital cameras of high optical performance, demands are increasing especially for digital cameras of compact type.
In digital cameras of compact type described above, from the perspective of easiness in carrying and accommodation thickness reduction is required. For the purpose of realizing such compact and thin digital cameras, in the conventional am variable zoom lens systems have been proposed that have a three-unit construction of negative lead type, in order from the object side to the image side, comprising a first lens unit having negative optical power, a second lens unit having positive optical power and a third lens unit having positive optical power and that have a reduced overall optical length (overall length of lens system: the distance measured from the vertex of a lens surface on the most object side in the entire lens system to the image surface).
For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 3513369 discloses a zoom lens which, in order from the object side to the image side, comprises three lens units of negative, positive and positive and in which: at a telephoto limit in comparison with a wide-angle limit, the individual lens units are moved such that the interval between first and second lens units and the interval between second and third lens units should decrease so that magnification change is achieved; the first lens unit is composed of two lenses of negative and positive; the second lens unit is composed of independent two lenses of positive and negative; the third lens unit is composed of one positive lens; and a particular relation is satisfied by the radius of curvature of the object side surface of the negative lens contained in the second lens unit and the focal length of the entire system at a wide-angle limit. In this zoom lens disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 3513369, overall optical length is reduced, and still high optical performance is obtained over the entire variable magnification range.
Further, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-301154 discloses a zoom lens which, in order from the object side to the image side, comprises three lens units of negative, positive and positive and in which: the intervals between the individual lens units vary at the time of magnification change; particular relations are satisfied respectively by the taken-image height and the focal length of the entire system at a wide-angle limit, by the axial interval between the first and the second lens units and the focal length of the first lens unit, and by the axial interval between the first and the second lens units and the focal length of the second lens unit; and a variable magnification ratio that falls within a particular range is obtained. This zoom lens disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-301154 has a wide view angle at a wide-angle limit as well as a relatively high variable magnification ratio.
Moreover, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-065034 discloses a zoom lens which, in order from the object side to the image side, comprises three lens units of negative, positive and positive and in which: the intervals between the individual lens units vary at the time of magnification change; the first lens unit is composed of two lenses of negative and positive; the second lens unit is constructed from a 2a-th lens unit composed of two lenses of positive and negative and a 2b-th lens unit composed of at least one positive lens arranged on the image side relative to the 2a-th lens unit; the third lens unit is composed of at least one positive lens; and particular relations are satisfied by the imaging magnifications of the second lens unit at a wide-angle limit and a telephoto limit, the interval between the first and the second lens units at a wide-angle limit, and the interval between the second and the third lens units at a telephoto limit. This zoom lens disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-065034 achieves desired optical performance and still has a reduced number of component lenses and relative compactness.    Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Publication No. 3513369    Patent Document 2: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-301154    Patent Document 3: Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2006-065034